12 sought in local mail-fraud ring

Federal authorities assisted Spartanburg Public Safety officers in rounding up several people wanted in a check-counterfeiting ring Wednesday.

By Jenny Arnoldjenny.arnold@shj.com

Federal authorities assisted Spartanburg Public Safety officers in rounding up several people wanted in a check-counterfeiting ring Wednesday.According to a federal indictment, 12 people from Spartanburg have been charged with mail theft, counterfeiting and criminal conspiracy in the case. Public safety officers and federal officers were seen in Spartanburg's southside, knocking on doors looking for some of the suspects at Norris Ridge Apartments, said Detective John Burgess. In all, officers checked for suspects at 15 addresses Wednesday.The investigation started when Burgess began looking into several mail thefts. Assisted by the U.S. Postal Inspectors, it was determined that mail with victims' bank information was stolen from mailboxes in Spartanburg, including residents of the east side and from Windsor House West, a nursing home, Burgess said.The suspects created checks using the victims' bank information and cashed them, Nowak said. The bad checks total about $40,000, according to investigators.Windsor House West employees were contacted by a collection agency in November and knew that they had not issued any payroll checks with the home's name as the header on checks so they alerted the public safety department, which then began the investigation.The indictment states that members of the ring presented bad checks made out to them at Walmarts on Spartanburg's east side and in Greer. Some members drove the others to cash checks, while others made the counterfeit checks or presented fake identification. Members of the ring would then divide the proceeds from the checks amongst themselves.In jail on the charges Wednesday were: Cierra Monique Moultrie, 24, of 105 Prospect St., Frederick Lamar Griffin, 23, of 350 Norris St., Apt. 231-C, and Jimmain Earl Hawes, 33, of 108 Norris Court.Burgess said to keep from becoming a victim of a counterfeiting ring of this type, a common scam, residents should mail their outgoing checks or other documents with bank information at secure post office boxes, rather than from their home mailboxes.“Keep an eye on your accounts, check your bank statements,” Burgess said.

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